Remove or remain.

[kennethdaysale]

Like many of you guys I have long been a proud and vocal proponent of catch and release. I was indoctrinated into this school of thought back in the late 70's when Ray Scott was the Pied Piper. It all seemed to make so much sense to me. If I release that fish it will get bigger and continue to breed and I might catch it again later. It looked like the classic win-win scenario. Not to mention the fact that it made me feel good, I was somehow angelic, benevelant, gracious, wise, a good steward, gentle, conservative maybe even a candidate for sainthood. I mean who wouldn't want to be all those things?

Fast forward many many years and I was still holding on to the catch and release mindset (just like many sr. fisheries mgrs around the country) even though it was no longer relevant or effective in many fisheries. Of course every aquatic ecosystem should be looked at and evaluated based on its current state of balance. Some lakes will still benefit from 100% catch and release while others would see huge improvements if every fish caught(or a slot) was removed for a while.

I suppose what I'm saying is that if you wear your catch and release beliefs on your sleeve like some sort of religious dogma that you hold dear just because it sounds good and wise, you may want to reevaluate that position.. You may well find out that in your situation and in the waters you fish it is still the best way to go. Then again you may not. Just dropping a fish back in the water to feel good about yourself or to honor some mental contract you have with yourself or because that's how you've always done it, may not really be the best thing for the fish or you.

If you are releasing fish because of some feeling that the life of that specific individual fish that you are releasing has some sort of sacred intrinsic value then this post is probably not meant for you, but consider a couple of analogies. Your a horse lover. It takes one acre of pasture to keep one adult horse healthy. You have five acres of pasture but you love horses so much you keep ten horses out there...where's the love or wisdom in owning 10 skinny sad horses. ......or...You and your wife earn enough money to support 2 children but you've got 4 and she's pregnant again. Both are indefensible results of honorable intentions.

I know this subject has been discussed before, but of all the things we could talk about here, this topic should be more near and dear to all our hearts than which hook to use etc.